Casino popularity may bring unwanted attention to Indian sovereignty

Sunday, Aug. 8, 1999 | 9:17 a.m.

That border, which requires no passport, no customs and no inspection, is under increasing scrutiny nationwide as new tribal enterprises, like the Viejas Casino & Turf Club, attract increasing numbers of people to their reservations.

The growth has led to questions about the rights on reservations of non-Indians - especially workers - and to attempts to redefine the limits of Indian sovereignty, which makes tribal land nominally independent from the U.S. government.

"Economic development has been the catalyst and has created the dynamic that you see now," said Mark Macarro, a prominent tribal leader in California and chairman of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians, whose reservation is about 80 miles northwest of the Viejas' eastern San Diego County land.

"Tribes are now trying to put actions behind the words (of Indian sovereignty)," he said. "It's my sense that when this starts occurring, those powers-that-be begin to take another look at tribal sovereignty and seem to come to the conclusion that 'this isn't quite what we meant."'

Challengers in court and Congress have tried - and failed so far - to whittle away at tribes' immunity to lawsuits, exemptions from most taxes and exclusion from labor laws that give unions access to other businesses. Congress rejected two measures in 1997 that would have denied federal benefits to tribes that refuse to waive immunity and forced tribes to provide an accounting of their income.

An estimated 260 casinos or bingo halls operate on Indian reservations nationwide compared with 70 in 1988, when Congress made Indian gambling legal, according to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission.

That development has brought workers who, in some cases, have complained to unions about conditions at casinos - including Pechanga and Viejas. Tribes have responded differently with some denying unions access and others allowing it.

Macarro, Viejas leaders and others contend that despite the lack of federal protection, their employees enjoy good working conditions. The proof, they say, can be found in generous employee packages with low- or no-cost individual insurance, retirement plans and annual cash bonuses. Employees also can often seek help for substance abuse, a problem that has long afflicted reservations.

Many Viejas employees echo the statements of management, offering anecdotes about leaving jobs of comparable pay but greater stress and fewer benefits.

A former bank employee gave up regular hours, $14 an hour and 14 years of experience to make $16.25 an hour plus tips dealing cards at Viejas.

"I plan to stay here for as long as I can. There are a lot of opportunities here," said Mary Ann Berger, a Viejas card dealer. "I think, to me, they take care of their people."

Others, however, paint a less rosy picture of life at Viejas and other tribal casinos. Some workers complain of low wages and their inability to choose a union.

"I like my job, but they treat people really bad," said Romelia Cervantes, a 50-year-old housekeeper who commutes 45 minutes each way from Tecate, Mexico.

Cervantes complains of erratic scheduling, low pay and favoritism. She says she started at $6 an hour two years ago and still makes that wage. She believes her managers favor non-Spanish-speaking staffers and contends that what little avenue of recourse she has - going to tribal leaders - only gets her in trouble with her managers.

Defenders of tribal sovereignty discount such complaints.

"It's a new set of laws, when you go to Indian country. It is their law, their country," said Ken Adams, a gambling consultant who has worked with several tribes in various states and managed a non-Indian casino in Reno, Nev., for 20 years.

Jack Gribbon, political action coordinator for the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union in California, insists his union supports Indian sovereignty, but would like tribes to agree to collective bargaining rights.

"The reality here is the vast majority of these workers are U.S. citizens who live in the United States," he said. "They are the engine behind a multibillion-dollar industry. ... It doesn't seem fair that they should have no rights whatsoever."

Gribbon said his union is not against the practice of favoring tribal members in hiring.

About 7 to 10 percent of the Pechanga workforce is made up of tribal members. The Pechanga tribe is about 1,500 people, while the Viejas tribe has about 250 to 300 members. About 1 percent of the Viejas workforce is made up of tribal members. The Viejas agreed to let the Communication Workers of America organize at their casino. The Pechanga have refused to give any union access.

The fight to redefine sovereignty may be resolved in courts.

Even if Congress approves a limit on tribal independence, any legislation is sure to be fought and then appealed through the court system.

Court action has held up an Indian-sponsored ballot measure last fall that would have allowed California tribes to determine the types and numbers of gambling machines without the governor's approval.

The measure passed, but two lawsuits questioning its constitutionality - one filed by Gribbon's union - have stopped its implementation.